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Media Coverage – Articles on 2025OMF

The 2025 Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival has been featured in a wide range of media outlets. Here are some highlights (updated regularly):

▪️Mainichi CLASSICNAVI (Sep. 12)
“Pick of the Month” – Creating World-Class Stages: OMF’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream"

2025OMF production of Britten’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" was chosen as a “Pick of the Month” by four music critics at Mainichi CLASSICNAVI.

"What stood out most in A Midsummer Night’s Dream was Laurent Pelly’s magnificent staging. From the countless tiny lights flickering through the darkness to the atmosphere of the fairy realm, the world was rendered with remarkable beauty. Though originally a production of the Opéra de Lille, it was well worth presenting here and proved a performance fully worthy of the festival’s reputation."─Hiroo Tojo (Music Critic)

▪️Bravo ONLINE (Sep. 3)
Nodoka Okisawa and Laurent Pelly deliver a rare balance of direction, orchestra, singers, and chorus—everything in perfect harmony

"With refined precision, OMF Principal Guest Conductor Nodoka Okisawa led the Saito Kinen Orchestra, bringing Britten’s craftsmanship to life and carrying audiences effortlessly between fantasy and reality. The music merged with Pelly’s dazzling visuals so seamlessly that sound and image united in a rare, transcendent harmony.──Complex as the tale may be, this staging made us lose ourselves completely until the last note. Its triumph lay in music, staging, and—above all—their seamless synthesis into an unforgettable operatic experience."─Toshi Kahara (Music Critic)

▪️Nikkei Shimbun (Sep. 2)
Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival – Britten’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream": Lively Staging in Perfect Harmony with the Music

"Directed by Laurent Pelly, the production was a triumph. Shakespeare’s play interweaves three distinct worlds—fairies and magic, royalty and lovers, and the circle of artisans. Pelly’s staging skillfully balanced these elements with a touch of modernity, using wires, mirrors, and glowing effects to create a fantastical space that drew the audience directly into the action.──Conductor Nodoka Okisawa led the Saito Kinen Orchestra with a calm yet assured baton, eliciting a finely detailed ensemble and maintaining seamless coordination with the large cast onstage. Her fundamentally straightforward approach allowed Britten’s inventive touches—from sound effects to gestures aligned with the singers’ movements—came across with striking clarity.
The performance reaffirmed how the spirit of the festival’s founder, the late Seiji Ozawa, continues to live on in Matsumoto. The quality of the performance, along with the warmth of the audience’s applause, made that legacy feel vividly alive."─Mitsunori Eto (Music Critic)

▪️Mainichi CLASSICNAVI (Aug. 31)
Orchestra Concert Program B—Celebrating Seiji Ozawa’s 90th Birthday, Conducted by Christoph Eschenbach with SKO performing Mahler’s Symphony No. 2

"As the performance progressed, the orchestra’s playing grew increasingly assured, and Eschenbach’s vision of Mahler gradually came into focus. Rather than striving to unleash the sheer force of a massive orchestra and create a wall of sound, his approach seemed to cherish each individual melodic line, highlighting the connections between them and the contrapuntal interplay. The way he carefully layered these elements, ultimately building toward an overwhelming finale, was truly masterful."─Kiwami Miyajima (Music Critic)

▪️NHK Nagano (Aug. 30)
Concert in Matsumoto Celebrates Seiji Ozawa’s 90th Birthday

▪️Mainichi CLASSICNAVI (Aug. 24)
Orchestra Concert Program A—SKO’s Power and Daishin Kashimoto’s Stunning Solo Leave a Strong Impression

"The second work on the program was Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1, with Berliner Philharmoniker’s first concertmaster, Daishin Kashimoto, as soloist.──Kashimoto’s playing was nothing short of extraordinary: dazzlingly precise intonation in Shostakovich’s harmonically ambiguous and densely wrought score, paired with incisive, razor-sharp expression throughout. His resonant, commanding tone never once disappeared into the rich sonorities of the Saito Kinen Orchestra; instead, he consistently led with a presence that was both powerful and breathtaking. ──The main work, Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5, received a traditional yet deeply compelling interpretation. The sheer power of the SKO, combined with the brilliance of its wind soloists, elevated the performance to remarkable heights. Both the opening movement and the finale displayed the orchestra’s formidable potential, the coda, in particular, left an overwhelming impression: a surging wall of strings driving relentlessly beneath the blazing brass and pounding timpani. When the final chords subsided, the applause continued unabated long after the orchestra had exited. In a moment recalling the festival’s Seiji Ozawa era, Soddy and the entire SKO returned to the stage to acknowledge the audience’s thunderous ovation."─Kiwami Miyajima (Music Critic)

▪️Asahi Shimbun (Aug. 21)
(Review / Music) Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival – Britten’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Subtle, Witty, and Rich in Virtuoso Interplay

"The international cast of singers carried their roles with remarkable finesse. Laurent Pelly’s production elegantly evoked the shifting starry skies of a midsummer night, as pajama-clad lovers hurled themselves into the dreamlike frenzy of romance, making inventive use of the production’s sole major prop—a bed. The exhilarating interplay between stage action and Britten’s score captured the very heart of the work.
Conductor Nodoka Okisawa drew out both the ethereal and the comic, shaping Britten’s music with clarity and cohesion while showcasing each soloist’s artistry. The result was a cohesive, vibrant performance.
Ultimately, the production reaffirmed how Ozawa’s vision—rooted in opera and symphony—continues to inspire and carry forward into the future."─Seiji Choki (Music Critic)

▪️Mainichi CLASSICNAVI (Aug. 18)
World-Class Opera from Matsumoto: Britten’s "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" at the Seiji Ozawa Matsumoto Festival

"Every aspect—singing, performance, and staging—was of international caliber, making this production a true successor to the late Seiji Ozawa’s vision of bringing world-class opera from Matsumoto to the world."─Haruo Yamada (Music Critic)